News |

UMaine investigates effects of road salt

By Jamison Cocklin

Posted on Monday, November 2nd, 2009, 1:45 am

E-mail

Tell us what you think!
Send a letter to the editor about this or any other article in The Maine Campus.

Road salt and its effects on cars, roads and state property is coming under scrutiny at the University of Maine Margaret Chase Smith Policy Center.

The Maine Legislature asked the Department of Transportation to examine the environmental, economic and safety issues of road salt to provide a better understanding of the chemical for those using it around the state. The transportation department subsequently asked the Smith Policy Center in October 2008 to study the various aspects of road salt.

“Our goal at the center is to provide a very clear picture of all the impacts of road salt, both good and bad,” said Peggy McKee, the research associate coordinating the project.

There are two approaches to snow and ice control: anti-icing and de-icing; de-icing is the approach with which most are familiar. It is characterized by allowing the snow to accumulate until there is enough to plow, and then, when it is plowed, a large amount of a sand and salt mixture is spread to provide traction. Anti-icing uses carefully calibrated equipment to spread a measured amount of salt early in a storm or by spreading a liquid form of salt brine on the roads that prevents snow from adhering to the road.

There are large costs associated with either method, as well as a number of environmental impacts. The average cost of delivered road salt is $35 per ton, and numerous problems from corrosion of bridges, cars and trucks to increasing environmental issues have been linked to road salt. There are a number of alternatives to road salt, but it has proven to be the most inexpensive method of clearing roads.

John Peckenham, assistant director of the Mitchell Center for Environmental and Watershed Research, who is working on the environmental aspect of the study, said, “100 percent of this salt ends up in the environment. The question we will continue to look at throughout these types of studies is, will the environment be able to tolerate the impact over the long run? Is it a horrible effect? We have yet to determine this, but we do know it has a negative effect on water quality, ecosystems and plant life.”

Peckenham stressed the importance of monitoring the effects of road salt on the environment and said, despite better alternatives, there will always be an emphasis on cost-effectiveness that, for now, will not allow other methods to be used.

“It is an issue of money, but as time goes on, maybe in 10 years or so, we might find that we will have to rely on a different substance to clear up the roads. It will be an issue of growing concern,” Peckenham said.

The report will provide a compendium of the environmental, economic and safety research the center has been conducting on road salt.

“We haven’t done any independent research. Instead we have gathered research to provide the stakeholders such as the trucking industry, the municipalities around the state and other parties involved in the use of road salt with something that they can use to make better decisions when they use the chemical,” Mckee said.

The state Transportation Department has a fleet of about 400 plow trucks used to control snow and ice on approximately 8,300 miles of state roads. Municipalities clear the majority of roads in the state.

In addition to the Smith Policy Center and the Mitchell Center, others taking part in the study include the School of Economics and the Department of Public Administration at UMaine. The report is expected to be complete at the end of November. Upon its completion, the center will present its report to the state Legislature, which will then decide whether to take any action based on its findings.